Weapons

Federal Judges Set Standard for TASER Use, Specify Believable Threat

December 29, 2009

Police need reasons to believe a suspect is dangerous before firing a TASER and can't use their stun gun simply because the person is disobeying orders or acting erratically, a federal appeals court in San Francisco ruled Monday.

The decision by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sets judicial standards for police and for people who claim they were victims of excessive force after police hit them with a TASER dart.

"The objective facts must indicate that the suspect poses an immediate threat to the officer or a member of the public," Judge Kim Wardlaw said in the 3-0 ruling.

Though stun guns may offer a valuable, nonlethal alternative to deadly force in defusing dangerous situations, Wardlaw said, they inflict a "painful and frightening blow" and must be used only when substantial force is necessary and other options are unavailable.

"It's a significant use of force, not like cuffing someone or using pain compliance or pepper spray," said Eugene Iredale, a lawyer for a San Diego-area man who was Tasered by a police officer who had stopped him for not wearing a seat belt. "It's not to be used promiscuously or lightly."

The ruling allows Iredale's client Carl Bryan to go to trial in his damage suit against Brian McPherson, a policeman in Bryan's hometown of Coronado. McPherson's lawyers were unavailable for comment.

Through the Fallen Officer Program, Kahr Arms will donate a Thin Blue Line model PM9 customized with the fallen officer's name on the side of the slide, and his or her badge number and "end of watch" date engraved on the top of the slide.

The Spokane Police Department has 56 guns pending auction and has sold 311 rifles in the last seven years. The City has already barred police from selling handguns and the police have destroyed 1,245 handguns or illegal firearms since 2011.

FN America LLC has announced the release of the highly anticipated FN SCAR 20S precision rifle, based on the FN MK20 SSR or Sniper Support Rifle currently fielded within USSOCOM. The 7.62x51mm-chambered rifle has been purpose-built to achieve superior long-range accuracy.

MT2 Firing Range Services has announced final approval of status to do business on the General Services Administration, GSA Advantage. Now, the company says, federal, state, and local governments can get the lead out of their ranges more efficiently.